In a strange and unplanned twist of fate, I photographed the staff of the maternity ward at the Ala Buka District Hospital today. This 11 member team is part of a staff of 43 that delivered 2,400 children this past year in the northern Jalalabad region of Kyrgyzstan.

Part of an ongoing series I’m working on. Ethnicity is a very sensitive and often taboo topic in many of the Post Soviet Central Asian states—where state names emphasize ethnic ownership and state boundaries were drawn with little regard to local histories. Particularly in Kyrgyzstan, ethnicity has proven a determining factor in many local conflicts. Here, Timur and his wife Umida sit with their newborn Bubusara, who was aptly named after a story by poet Chinghiz Aitmatov. They married in January and I was told their daughter was only 25 days old. Timur’s parents are ethnic Tajik and ethnic Kyrgyz, while Umida’s are ethnic Uzbek. I won’t be able to develop these rolls until I’m home, sadly. (at Ала Бука, Кыргызстан)

Rows of USAF C-17 and KC-135 aircraft line the runway at #ManasTransitCenter. Manas acted as the primary airbase for American forces in #Afghanistan after #humanrights abuses in #Uzbekistan (5/13/13) led to an early termination of the Karshi-Khanabad (K2) air base in SE Uzbekistan in 11/2005. Recent pressure from Russia has prompted the Kyrgyz parliament to pass new measures that will end the American lease of Manas in July 2014. U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel hosted his Romanian counterpart Corneliu Dobritoiu at the pentagon last Friday, where the issue was on the agenda. (at “Манас” эл аралык аэропорту / Международный аэропорт «Манас» / Manas International Airport)

A family sits by a memorial commemorating the 2010 Revolution that overthrew Kurmanbek Bakiyev. This revolution was preceded by the Tulip Revolution in 2005, during which Askar Akayev was forced from power. (at Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan)

Hussanah Mamasali purchased two sheep to celebrate the birth of a grandson and to welcome back three of his relatives who had been working in Russia. Here are a few family members sitting across from the 2 sheep which are ready to be distributed to his family and friends. I received a piece and it was delicious. Hussanah and his family hosted their party at a rented home in the mono-ethnic Uzbek community of Arslanbon in Southern Kyrgyzstan. (at Arslanbob, Kyrgyzstan)

Isroil Isakov, the father of one of my co-workers, embraces two of his many grandchildren as he returns from working in the fields near the predominantly Uzbek city of Aravan on the border in Southern Kyrgyzstan. Despite his age, he says he couldn’t imagine a day without the mental and physical stimulation of work.

Nazgul sits in her home in Josh, Kyrgyzstan and enjoys tea with her friends. She was kidnapped by her current husband one year prior in a fairly common practice known as “bride-kidnapping”. At the time she did not know her husband, who had just completed his military service in Batken. Now they are happily expecting their first child to arrive in the next 4 months.

Ajay Nurza sits in her family’s yurt in a jailoo near Gulcha in Southern Kyrgyzstan. Rural residents will take their livestock to pasture land known as jailoo during the summer months for grazing before the winter comes. The yurt is made of several pieces of wood wrapped in felt and can be packed and moved within a day.